Fake checks from Weston bank used in secret-shopper scam

Counterfeit cashier's checks resembling those of Florida Community Bank in Weston are being used in a secret-shopper scam.

The con artists have sent the checks nationwide to job seekers found on the Internet, said Florida Community Fraud Manager Melissa Favorite.

The job seekers are told they've been selected for "Secret Survey" assignments. They're given checks for either $1,976 or $3,380, told to deposit the check in an ATM — and then to use most of the money to buy a Green Dot prepaid card and email a person the card's personal ID number, the U.S. Office of the Comptroller of the Currency reported.

Those who deposit the counterfeit checks have to pay the money back, said Cindy Liebes, the Atlanta-based southeast regional director for the Federal Trade Communication.

Florida Community has gotten "several" calls from banks across the country asking whether the cashier's check is legitimate, Favorite said. The bank is turning over information about the scam to law enforcement authorities, she said.

"It's a pretty sophisticated scam," said South Florida bank analyst Ken Thomas. Con artists replicate the bank's cashier's checks, using paper similar to the bank's to print the fake ones, he said.

Last May, Miami-based Sabadell Bank, which has two branches in Broward and four in Palm Beach County, reported another secret shopper scheme that used counterfeit cashier's checks that looked like the bank's.